India has decided to reopen the Dera Baba Nanak - Kartarpur Sahib Corridor from November 17, ahead of Gurpurab, which falls on November 19 this year.
Gurpurab marks the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak and observed reverently by the Sikh community. It is also known as Guru Nanak Prakash Utsav and Guru Nanak Jayanti.
The announcement was made by the Union Ministry of Home Affairson Tuesday which said in a release that the decision has been taken &lsquokeeping in view improved Covid-19 situation&rsquo.
India had closed the corridor when the country went into lockdown mode in March last year.
Close to the Indian border town of Gurdaspur is Darbar Sahib or Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara in Pakistan. Founder of the Sikh religion, Guru Nanak spent the last 18 years of his life at Kartarpur. The Gurudwara, which marks the site of his final resting place, was reopened in 1999 after a thorough repair.
A six kilometre corridor between the neighbouring countries separates Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur with Kartarpur Sahib of Narowal. Although Indian pilgrims could visit Kartarpur Sahib with valid visas from Pakistan, the opening of the corridor in 2019 along with visa-free travel eased travel between the two shrines.
Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak is about 1 km from the Indo- Pakistan border and on the east bank of River Ravi. To the west side of the river is Gurdwara Sri Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan, which is about 4.5 km from the international border. The Indian part of Dera Baba Nanak - Sri Kartarpur Sahib Corridor consists of a 4.1 km long four-lane highway from Dera Baba Nanak to international border and a state of the art Passenger Terminal Building at the international border.
Pilgrimage through the Shri Kartarpur Sahib Corridor would be facilitated as per existing procedures and adherence to Covid protocols, the release said.
For more details, see here (https://prakashpurb550.mha.gov.in/kpr/)